Monday, September
24, 2007
We went back to the Shamian Island this morning for
the medical examination required to get a United
States Visa for Louisa. The clinic is the Health Care
Center of Guangdong International Travel and it had a
separate examination room for adopted children. The
room was rather small and there were three exam
stations: 1. height and weight 2. ears, eyes and
throat 3. general health. Trying to get 9 crying
babies through all three stations was totally chaotic.
Louisa definitely did not enjoy the medical
examinations, she screamed the entire time. The best
news was that we finished first. The examinations
were far from thorough. In our humble, medical
opinion, I do not think you can properly gauge a child
health condition in 3 minutes or less.
After the medical examinations, we were free to walk
around the island. We walked through the parks that
run through the center of the island. Many locals
were exercising by playing badminton, kicking a “hacky
sack”, doing Tai Chi or by using the public exercise
equipment. What looked like a playground was actually
exercise equipment. Avery even tried out what look
like a Nordic track. Our exercise consisted of
walking through the park to get to the shopping.
The area surrounding the famous White Swan hotel has
many little shops that sell just about everything from
children’s squeaky shoes to Chinese swords and all
prices are negotiable. The only setback is the sales
people are rather aggressive. All the families ended
up having to buy a new suitcase to hold all our
purchases. Louisa got lots of squeaky shoes and a
beautiful bracelet. Avery is very excited about her
new Panda backpack and Charlie has a new Lacoste polo,
or does he?
Once the shopping was over, all the families went to
the White Swan Hotel to take pictures on the famous
“red couch”. All the children and some of the older
siblings dressed in traditional Chinese clothes and
sat on the couch for a group picture. Louisa and
Avery wore matching red Chinese dresses and looked
absolutely adorable. The hotel, built on the banks of
the Pearl River, is quite beautiful. The inside is
lavishly decorated with tropical gardens, waterfalls
and Chinese artwork. Despite how great it looks
today, it is still closing this winter for major
renovations, mostly to the rooms.
After our visit to the White Swan, we had a
traditional Cantonese dim sum meal. We feasted on
dumplings, steamed buns, spring rolls and much, much
more. Louisa was very content with Chinese custard
and a bottle of formula. The food in the Cantonese
region of China is regarded as the best in all of
China. The Cantonese are very proud of their food and
are known for eating almost anything. Thanks to
Dennis, our meal avoided some of the more exotic
Cantonese delicacies, like chicken feet or snake.
Only a couple more days until our incredible journey comes
to an end, only for another one to begin when we get Louisa
home. |
Everyone is
smiling except the patient
Guns & Trees
Hacky Sack is not just for kids
Peace, dude.
Avery and Louisa together at last |
